SkaForHire

choosingsides by skaforhire, on Flickr Let's Just say yes? That means people who won the GNAR, or got the Special member badges, could also preregister. I tried to simplify it. I think once people get used to it, it will be kind of easy to follow.

This post has been changed to a rules thread for Category C. Please ask your rules questions here. Here is a link to the "Game Thread" which has the links to the current mini-challenges / warzones. +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_ Change Log: Mar 3 -- Added that every build must have two approvals from seasoned builders. Any builder with a GOH Tag may give a thumbs up approval. Added Victory Points chart and map. Mar 5 -- Clarified rules about guerrilla and counter MOCs. Clarified rules about approval system. Thread Title Tags added. Mar 7 -- Clarified Guerrilla Building - you call the location, cities(spaces that have multiple victory points, even if the city name is not on the map) must have multiple attacks per week equal to their victory points in order to have a successful attempt. Naming convention added for Guerrilla and Counters. Mar 25 -- Guerrilla Rules fixed Mar 27 -- language about safe zones extended to successful GAs (as intended by language already in the document about failed counters later on) April 1st -- Clarified language changed pictures. April 2nd -- Clarified counters further (using rules discussed in the thread) April 6th -- reiterated approvals. And changed going forward. Category C – The Dynamic War and Map Challenge. Category A and B of the next challenge will be similar to the past, however Category C is all new. I think there is something here for everybody. Think of this challenge as Team Iron Builder + Historica + Wargame First I will give a quick version of the rules (for you who are tired of reading!), and then a detailed version. NOT THE OFFICIAL MAP, just for demonstration. warmap by skaforhire, on Flickr Step 1: Choose sides Step 2: mini - challenges on the map are declared, using the map grid. Sea above. Step 3: Each mini-challenge has parameters and last two or three weeks. Step 4: After the due date, the entries are put into a voting tab, and all of EBs can vote for which side won the battle. Step 5: Winner (except where noted) gets to choose the next battle site according to the rules. Step 6 repeat, and multiple mini challenges, with different due dates will be happening at once. Step 7: at the end of three months points are tallied. Each square is worth at least one victory point, squares with cities are worth 2 victory points, battles won are worth 1 victory point. Queenscross, Sultans Gate, Barqa, and Xersia are worth 3 points each. Petraea is worth 4 victory points. Step 8 – Winner is the side with most victory points. Caveat: There is another way to “win squares” called the personal challenge, this is described in the detailed rules. +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_ Category C The dynamic war and Map Challenges: Kaliphlin is divided by 3 powers, the High Council, The Desert King, and the Ulandians – Builders have a chance to declare for a side before the war begins. We may have to balance sides. As the war progresses, all late-comers are put on the weaker team. The map marks where the powers currently hold position. THE BATTLES Every week at least two zones will be up for grabs. (If it is popular, we will scale it up to 3 or 4 zones). I will put up a theme or mission, a little backstory, and a small geography lesson about the area so that the builds will have a general cohesiveness. Each challenge will be somewhat unique, but we will announce ahead of time “Major Battles” that builders have 4 weeks to prepare for. The minimum build time for a mini-challenge will be 2 weeks. Builders will make a MOC located in one of the zones (stated clearly in their post). Each builder may build one MOC per zone / per challenge. The build doesn’t have to be combat, it could be a supply train, or something else that fits into the theme given for the mini-challenge battle. JUDGING At the due date, I will compile all the builds in a voting thread, all EB members are welcomed to vote for which side won. People will be told to vote on their favorite build and which side won overall. They will be instructed to vote according to build and story, but not photography. Sometimes there may be certain judging qualifications needed specified. For example, if one side has an overwhelming amount of builds, we might ask that when judging, members should only consider the six best builds from each side. PERSONAL RANKS: On each side of the battle, winner, second, third, fourth, and fifth will receive points toward their “rank” in the war. All builders receive a base 2 points per build. There will be a rank system custom to each side. The ranks / point totals / will help determine a overall Winner of Category C. PICKING THE NEXT BATTLE ZONE When not stated otherwise, the highest scoring builder from the winning faction will decide which zone to move to the next week . It is advised that they coordinate with their team though. The wining builders should submit their target in the thread they post their build, so that we can immediately get started on the next mini-challenge if they win. They could move the battle to any “no-man’s land” zone, or any zone that directly touches their team’s territory that belongs to an enemy or to no-man’s land that their territory borders. For purposes of choosing, all nine squares around a zone are considered touching or bordering. warmap by skaforhire, on Flickr For example, if the red faction won the last battle, they could choose many different places on this map. They could pick H9, H10, J11, K11, or B10 for example because each of those spots fit the description of eligible battle zones. There are also many more on the map not named above that fit the parameters. The red leader could NOT pick I7 because it is not within one square of territory they own. (it is two no man’s land squares from Red territory. The red leader could NOT pick D5, because it is in the middle of Blue Territory. Lastly, some zones will be off limits, these zones will be marked in another color. Any zone in which a battle (Warzone or successful Guerrilla Attack) has just concluded, or concluded the week before is “Safe” from battle. This includes zones conquered through decisive victories, but not overwhelming victories (see special circumstances section below.) IF we get a situation where only two factions can reach a location (No no-man’s land to cross, or the third faction’s territory touching the warzone), then we may open up a “ flash war-zone”, where everyone can participate. This zone’s winner would not pick a new location. The challenge would continue, with most Sundays ending at least one mini-challenge. They will overlap one another, so that two challenges are going at all times. SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES: If a side builds more MOCs than the other two sides put together, and they win the challenge, then the second place scorer from the side can pick an additional square worth only one victory point that borders the battle zone, and claim the territory as an “overwhelming” victory. If one side wins 60% of the popular vote in a three way battle, or 75% in a two way battle, the second place scorer from the side can pick an additional square worth only one victory point that borders the battle zone, and claim the territory as an “Decisive” victory. +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_ Hey, I don’t like making war MOC’s, this sucks! Well, there is a part of this challenge just for you! The Personal Challenge! (AKA Guerilla Phase) The Guerrilla Phase! This is worth 3 individual points in the rankings. Each builder can pick a location anywhere in a territory outside their faction and take a “guerrilla action.” Each builder can make one guerrilla action each week. It should be clear in the post where the action is happening. Guerrilla actions cannot happen in a zone that is off limits (Zones that recently changed hands will be off limits for two weeks, and will be clearly noted on the updated map.) IF attacking a city with a Guerrilla action, there needs to be at least the number of Guerrilla builders equal to the number of the Victory Points the city is worth. (IE: Queenscross is worth 3 VP, so in one week three MOCers from an enemy faction would need to coordinate their strike in order to make a valid attempt on the city) In a multiple Guerrilla Action against a zone, ALL GAs must win in order to turn the zone over to the attacker. (Personal ranking points are awarded no matter the outcome of the square.) The guerrilla action would be something to affect that area. It could be repairing a war-torn village, conducting a raid, a spy job, a hostage rescue, a mission to sabotage the other side, recruiting, anything that is not directly a battle between two sides. The builder would create this MOC, and then prepare for others to “Counter” it. 'Guerrilla Action MOCs require the same approval as battle MOCs. So make sure to have a good story, a well photographed build, and make it obvious that this isn’t a quick building with figs on a baseplate. It should be clear that effort was made in the build. At the end of the week, on the map I will mark where Guerrilla actions have been discovered. The counter-action – Each builder can make one counter-action a week, and this action is taken against any Guerrilla action in their territory. A counter-action is when a builder picks one of the sites of the last week’s guerrilla action that occurred in their faction’s territory, and builds a MOC to reverse it. This is worth 4 points. The challenge is, the build must be similar (think mirror building, but you can reinterpret the build) to the guerrilla attack. (IE: if the guerrilla builder made a farm, and set it ablaze, the counter attack should show the same farmstead [doesn’t have to be exact, but an interpretation of the farm] in transition back to working. Rebuild it, garrison it, etc…) Counter actors should make it known that they plan on countering a guerrilla in their territory so that there are only a few people working on a counter (that way your team can counter multiple threats). Counter builds cannot be larger than the Guerrilla build they are countering. The guerrillas build will be presented against the counter-builds in a general voting thread. If the guerrilla wins, that zone will turn over to their side and the builder earns an addition 6 personal points. All Guerrilla Builds should have their own thread, with a link posted in the Category C thread. The naming convention for Guerrilla builds from this point on should be: [G: Location, your faction vs the owner of the zone you are attacking] ie: [G:J13, DK vs U] Counter builds should look similar: [CG: location, your faction vs the guerrilla's faction] IE: [CG:J13, U vs DK], This naming convention will help us straighten out where things are happening. Counter-builders have at least a week to counter a guerrilla MOC. Their week starts the Monday after the Guerrilla MOC is posted and ends on the next Sunday. (IE: if the Guerrilla MOC is posted on Monday, the deadline to counter would be TWO Sundays from that Monday, whereas if the guerrilla MOC was posted on a Sunday, the deadline would be the NEXT Sunday) All counters should be posted to the Guerrilla Build's thread. The Guerrilla attack thread will be checked on Monday of the next week to compile all counter MOCs for voting. All cities (any place with multiple VP are cities on the map - check smaller Nice Marmot maps for details which city is where) have three weeks of counter time. Any zone deeply in enemy territory (More than two zones deep in all directions, including water) will have two weeks of counter time. Any zone in the "Special victory condition" area of the Desert King would also get two weeks to counter, since these are worth a lot at the end. GAs that go uncontested will be awarded to the attacker. This includes zones with multiple attacks. IE: If a zone is Guerrilla Attacked with two MOCs and the defenders only counter one of the MOC, the attackers win. Special rule: Failed Countered territories can immediately be guerrilla attacked the next week by the team that lost the territory. This gives the old team a second chance to get a valuable territory back. A failed counter is anytime the defender loses after a counter attempt is made. Uncontested GAs do not earn the same protection as a successful GA that was challenged and won. (IE: they are not protected from the third faction for two weeks) Attacks by all three factions -- In a 1 Guerrilla v 1 Guerrilla v defender zone situation there are two ways to resolve the outcome. If the defenders can create a counter MOC that takes care of both Guerrilla Attacks, then they can counter with just one MOC. In this case, the three MOCs will go head to head to head. If multiple "dual counter MOCs" are made, then the judges will be asked to apply the best counter (in their opinion) against the other two GAs in the head to head to head poll. If multiple single MOC Counters are made, and both Guerrillas win, then the next week both guerrilla action MOCs will go head to head, winner takes the square. If only one guerrilla MOC wins, the next week it will go head to head against the winning counter of the other GA. Personal points chart: Guerrilla Attack Build: 3 points. Requires 3 approvals Counter Attack Build: 4 points. Requires 4 approvals. Uncontested win by a Guerrilla Attack: 2 points. Contested Win by a Guerrilla Attack: 6 points. Best Counter (If the counter attackers win): 3 points +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_ Finally, there will be a thread for each mini-challenge battle. This is where you report your separate thread that you posted your challenge entry in. Also, you should state where the next target is if you win. Again, teams should talk about possible targets so that they are declaring similar targets when they post their build. We will take whatever location the winning builder picked, even if their entire team picked another location. For Guerrilla actions, the builder should make a separate thread that displays their attack the thread should start with [Guerrilla] then title. Factions may want to start a general thread to coordinate their team for Category C, and even the other two categories. actions for points by skaforhire, on Flickr End game – at the end of the three months, the squares will be tallied, and this will go into deciding which side won the overall civil war. Each square is worth at least one victory point, squares with cities are worth 2 victory points, battles won are worth 1 victory point. Queenscross, Sultans Gate, Barqa, and Xersia are worth 3 points each. Petraea is worth 4 victory points. Below is a map with the locations that are worth more than one victory point. SPECIAL: Since the Desert King starts with a lot less victory points, they have a special condition. At the end of the war, if they control squares, A12, A13, A14, A15, and B12 they achieve a victory condition called "Keeping the Supply Line open" This is worth 15 points in the end of war tally. Victory Points Starting by skaforhire, on Flickr starting VP by skaforhire, on Flickr =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Approvals: Every MOC must have two approvals from seasoned builders. Any builder with a GOH Tag may give a thumbs up approval. Starting April 6th, all approvals must be made by a neutral or enemy party. An approval is given with a " " symbol. Once a MOC has two it is eligible to win its contest, and the builder will be rewarded their points for the build. To keep the process running, voting threads will have all available MOCs present, even if they have not received their two yet. By the end of the week, when voting ends, any MOC that does not have two will be disqualified from winning, and the MOCer will only receive 1 point. This is the easiest way to do this, there may be a few builders that do not have GOH tag.shield that I may ask to be an "Approver" if we need more. =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Thread Title Tags: Tags for battlezone MOCs should look like this so that we can recognize them right away: MOC Title [Warzone number:grid location, faction name] it should look something like the following: Patrolling the Fields of the Arkbri Valley [WZ1: E7, High Council] =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Who will you declare for? The 1st Centurion by -Mike S-, on Flickr throneroom by skaforhire, on Flickrdesertking by skaforhire, on Flickr Petitioning the Kaliphlin Council by -Mike S-, on Flickr

The turbans are Brickforge, the ones that are two pieces are the turban and the Arabian helmet, they snap together instead of using the top of the turban. I think green turbans are on deep discount right now. But Ulandians can have any headgear, as noted before, even though each legion has a assigned color, how they are uniformed and armored differ from company to company, and even from squad to squad.

Discussions at Sea (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 15) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Discussions at Sea meeting at sea by skaforhire, on Flickr Aboard the Fishmonger’s Wife Captain Nelbort Northman receives the diplomats from Ulandus. His privateer vessel had been roaming the Spice Islands, looking for goods-laden Kaliphlin ships heading for Mitgardia that had their papers out of order… Ten days back, while restocking at Barqa, he received a letter from the Foreign Ministry of Mitgardia, asking them to pick up a diplomat on one of the southern Spice Isles. Always willing to help, Northman headed to the location. He exchanged pleasantries with a ship flying colors he did not recognize – Blue and Green – but they also had a Kaliphlin flag. Four men boarded his ship, and he set off for his home waters. The men were dressed similar to Far Eastern Kaliphinites who lived on the Eastern coast just south of Nocturnus. They had similar accents as well. Their leader, Moti Shinzu, became fast friends with Norhtman. Northman was happy to have someone with so much interest in privateering on board. As they traveled they talked about the strange new subcontinent that he hailed from. DSC_1678 by skaforhire, on Flickr Moti had just finished fishing one day when Northman came to him for one of their usual talks. “So what does Ulandus want with Mitgardia? Why are you headed so far away from Kaliphlin, if the emperor wishes only to rejoin Kaliphlin? Asked Northman. Moti was quiet for a moment, and as usual, gave a calculated answer. “All great guilds need strong friends. We know of the arms race last year between Kaliphlin and Mitgardia. It is the emperors wishes that Kaliphlin and Mitgardia put aside their differences and prepare for a more trying time.” “What could be more trying than the series of guild civil wars we have been facing the last few years?” Northman asked. DSC_1677 by skaforhire, on Flickr “Putting a king back on the throne of Cedrica, making Historica whole again.” Moti answered. “Peace between the guilds is essential for this, and for the next steps.” After he said the last bit he looked shocked, as if he may have given something away. As much as Northman tried to get Moti to tell him of the next steps, the soft-spoken diplomat would not budge. Finally he altered the subject a little. “What does Kaliphlin and Ulandus offer Mitgardia?” Moti began what seemed like a very well-rehearsed line. “In return for support and friendship, the Emperor will persuade the council to drop all duties on Mitgardian goods, and having much wealth from the oil trade, will pay Mitgardia a large subsidy each year for thirty years. Free water and food will be available in every Kaliphlin port for any Mitgardian vessel. Kaliphlin will support Mitgardian claims on the northern plains of the territory known as Cedrica. Finally, the new king will be Mitgardian.” “Won’t the Avalonians and Nocturnans have a problem with that last bit?” Moti said. “The Emperor has other plans for Avalonia. They will be happy with what we have already offered them.” When Northman looked at the diplomat, he spilled the rest of the beans. “The Emperor will support Avalonian claims on Esterbroke, and allow for joint occupation of the island. It will be divided in half.” “The High Council will not go for that.” Northman said, he knew the Kaliphlinites were busy making plans on that island, and the last time he visited it, it was 90% Kaliphlinites in the civilized parts. “Some of the High Council will no longer be welcome in Petraea. A civil war is expected. Sides have firmed up in the last month, since Dextrus was killed.” Moti said. “It seems the neutralists on the Council have lost much of their support to both the Desert King and to the Emperor. The Emperor being much stronger.” Moti said. “And what about Nocturnus?” Northman said. “There are certain elements of Nocturnus that don’t fit into the future.” Moti said, and that was all he said about the subject. Northman had caught the whole angle though, not one of the three sides were powerful enough to sway the others without fighting. Ulandus needed Avalonia and Mitgardia to turn the tide of war. Moreover, they probably wanted Mitgardia to deal with the Desert King in the north, and keep his Nocturnan allies at bay, while the Avalonians crushed the Neutralists who were strong in the west. This strategy seemed too plain to see. He wondered how much the other two factions were willing to give to join their side. One thing was for certain… privateering was about to become much more lucrative.

Actually, the starter task for those who side with Ulandus is to build the 13th legion. So yes, if you join that side you do! The other two sides have different starter tasks. These starter task winners will decide who gets to choose the next location of battle in the Category C challenge -- I will be posting more on that today so people can understand the rules. Category A and B will be similar to previous challenges, but C will be a dynamic war challenge with many mini challenges in the next three months.

Picking and Choosing (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 14) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Picking and Choosing Dugal and the other lords of the Small Council for Western Affairs waited for the Desert King’s emissary. The capital was still in morning, and many of the other High Lords were meeting with the lower lords in order to calm fears that Kaliphlin was falling apart. Dugal had to remind some people in his Small Council that Kaliphlin had for some years now been ruled by the High Lords, and that Flagg was more of symbol of Kaliphlin prosperity and rule than an actual ruler. Ten days had passed since the emergency meeting with the Leander. Since that time, the council had become more polarized. Lord Bain led the pro Desert King faction and Lady Phlici, new to the council, led the pro-Ulandus faction, most of the major lords – the real movers and shakers of Kaliphlin – were still undecided or had vowed to stay neutral. Dugal was amongst the later, and more and more he began to like the idea of sending a peacekeeping force to Western Kaliphlin to keep the two sides from fighting. Without announcement, in came the emissary. He was a strange man, with a face painted in Gold. He wore the old noble headdress that the Mountain Mummies were so fond of. He wore scant linens, and seemed naturally adapted to the mid-day Petraea heat. His staff seemed almost… alive. DSC_1523 by skaforhire, on Flickr “I am Ka’ha’ton, speaker for his greatness, Pharaoh of Kaliphlin, Ruler of Kaligem, Priest of the Sun, Ark'Mora Raa. I come to you to give you his terms.” The man said. “His terms?” Asked Gideon.” “Yes the Sun King declares that he shall take Flagg’s place as ruler of Kaliphlin. The council will report to him. He will lead the guild back to greatness. He will rule fairly, and you all will have his respect. He will take your council, but will hold final decision. For your sacrifice, he will protect Kaliphlin, he will nurture her back to her greatness, and he will see you all richly rewarded.” The ambassador proclaimed. “Best sales pitch I have heard all day!” Said Lord Bain. “How do we know that the Desert King can even deliver on these promises?” Dugal said. “For the Pharaoh has already began working on these promises. He has rid Kaliphlin of Drow in the short time since he has been back. The last Drow were hunted down three days ago.” The gold-faced man said calmly. “He honor’s Flagg’s memory through this deed.” Drowhunter by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1573 by skaforhire, on Flickr “I don’t that could be true… Those things breed like flies, and live in the same filth.” Dugal replied. “It is true, although Raa believes that Flagg’s assassin may have left guild territory, as none of the Drow he caught would confess to the murder.” The ambassador said. Dugal knew that any guilty drow that was caught would have bragged about the deed before being executed. Then again, he still was confused how a Drow assassin could have hid from Flagg in a totally white room… “This is interesting, as my eyes and ears have report and extreme lack of Drow in the East, and I had mentioned to Lord DaMaximus this occurrence, and he replied that no Drow had been in Mpya Stedor for weeks according to his messengers.” Gideon said. “Perhaps we can assume that the Desert King has been the partial cause of this?” The ambassador said calmly, “He is the complete cause of this abnormally. The Pharaoh wishes it, and it is done.” Interesting. Thought Dugal. He wondered how many men the Desert King had. The ambassador continued, and pointed to the maps on the table. “His Greatness has claimed Sultan’s Gate as his temporary capital until Kaligem is rebuilt. He will move to Petraea when the majority of the Council submits to his rule. He will lodge himself in this great building.” “Where will the council meet then?” Asked Lady Kylee. “You will meet here, at his invitation.” The ambassador continued. “He wishes you all to have a part in the reclamation of honor that he will lead in Kaliphlin. Although he will be your master, he is a gracious master, and will reward you all handsomely.” “Well, I’m sold. “ Bain stated, his voice couldn’t be more cheerful. “ All in favor of putting this proposition to the High Council, say aye!” His cronies confirmed his suggestion, but nobody else did. “We must think on this, Ka’ha’ton” Gideon said, and the ambassador left. =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ The secret meeting was going well. DSC_1525 by skaforhire, on Flickr In the middle of the table, General Royce Ponce was detailing Ulandus’s plan for a new aqueduct to supply the Parched Lands and the Lick of Salt. It was a huge, expensive undertaking, but Octo was impressed with the plans. Not that it really benefited him much, but he did have a few oil wells in the Lick of Salt, and keeping workers alive and hydrated did have its benefits. The Ulandians, more specifically “first Centurion” was willing to pay the whole tab on the project to show good faith to the rest of the council. Octo really didn’t care if the Ulandians joined Kaliphlin, but he knew that there seemed to be more upside than drawbacks, even if the other High Councilors did not come to the same conclusion. So much trade could be had! He was surprised that Lord Bain had come to this meeting, and that Phlici was strangely absent… then again so was General Lat’ve, and those two were clearly an item. What a shame, she was so pretty and probably easily seduced. At least he believed so. The talk of gold brought him back to the conversation. “Yes, there will be a large share for each of you, and the low lords in this room will be raised to high lord for their support.” Ponce said. “How do you suppose that will happen, the whole council will have to vote on that. First Centurion could not control this.” Lord Octo said. “Were you not paying attention?” Bain said. “IF the Ulandians have to force their rights by fighting those who oppose their rejoining the guild, then there would rewards for the low lords.” Octo knew Bain could not be on board with this, he was too proud of being a high lord to willingly let others join the rank. In fact, Octo was pretty certain that Bain was only here to spy on the Ulandians for the Desert King. “So in conclusion, First Centurion offers his hand in friendship. The five high lords of Ulandus offer their embrace as brothers, and the Legions of Xersia will be at the council’s command for the upcoming attempt to put a king on the throne of Cedrica.” Ponce said. “We offer new aqueducts, new trade routes, our navy, and our expertise of the Southern Ocean. All of these will help grow Kaliphlin commerce to new levels.” He cleared his throat. “I believe our good will has already been shown. The Thousand Suns have rebuilt some of the Southern villages already. We have brought food to places struck with famine. We have provided military training for those who want to be able to defend themselves, and we have already given much gold to you all, and many of the Kaliphlin lords. It is time for the rejoining.” Thosand Suns by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1682 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1686 by skaforhire, on Flickr =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Dugal confronted Bain in the Small Council room. He had thought that the council was meeting without all its members, and he assumed Bain had been the source of this break in procedure. He assumed that Lord Bain just wanted to muscle more low council members to his position, be it on the Sand King or on Eastgate. DSC_1530 by skaforhire, on Flickr “Why have you broken procedure? You know our small council is to meet as a whole.” Dugal said. Lord Bain smiled. “You think I called a meeting to sit down with the Ulandians?” Dugal had not known the Ulandian ambassador was back, and oddly enough Phlici was not in the city today. “I suppose not. Who called the meeting” Dugal asked. “I have no idea, I received a letter under the crack of my Inn room door this morning. It said to come here and meet. Whoever put the meeting together must know your position to stay neutral. You have been a steadfast supporter of the peacekeeping force these last few days.” Bain changed his tone, “how they did not know my opinion, I am not so sure.” “So you spoke against the Ulandus plan?” Dugal asked. “Of course not, they paid me well to sit in that meeting, and I was curious to what they were up to.” Bain said. “If you have noticed, their grain trains have even reached the gates of this very city.” “I have, although my messengers say that none of that food has made it to the Eastgate area.” Dugal replied. “That is because they don’t want to feed your army. They know you are competition, and one of the larger forces the council has. If your army starves, they will desert, when your army has dwindled enough, you will be forced to side with them. This is an easy strategy to spot, Dugal.” Bain said as if he thought Dugal had not thought of this already. “You finally made a sound move and brought some of your forces West for the peacekeeping mission, spreading your forces will help you feed them better.” As he said that last part, Dugal had a bad feeling. Bain never gave compliments. “Now that I have won the debate in the High Council over your use of Kaliphlin soldiers for your war of heredity, I think the bad blood between us should subside. I encourage you to listen to the Desert King’s offers. He is most generous, and he is a true Kaliphlin leader. I fear that if the majority of the council keeps upon this path of neutrality, we won’t get a say in our new government.” “Who said we needed a new government?” Dugal asked. “You are stuck in the past, McLean. Kaliphlin is headed for great things, and we need to choose the right ruler.”

I should make a note that the first legion is actually called the Thousand Suns... the 40k joke may have went too far when I quickly made that chart late at night. I plan on replacing the chart with something prettier when I make the "Choose your side" thread. We are almost there everyone, 5 more days until the challenge starts! I think only 3 more chapters to go, unless I get a few more builds in from some of the estranged builders.

Hence lesser spice islands :) Those islands didn't have a name on the map, I gave them one, but we can say that that is what the Ulandians call them, and we might have another official Kaliphlin name?

I have no idea what you are talking about.... Let's just say there are a lot of homages being paid here in the story.

Bannihal’s Report (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 13) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Bannihal’s Report Leovetus had left the council with Dugal’s assurance that at least Eastgate would support his side of the order. The MacLeans had had many non-human allies over the years, and he felt odd about Lord Kral ever since he had met him. Leovetus left the chamber with a written report by Bannihal, and the council had adjourned formalities to go over the papers. The first was a report about a sabotage mission that the Leander resistance had pulled off. (Thanks to Kai for this build!) Shipwrecked! by gid617, on Flickr A 12th Legion ship, apparently the 12th Legion, the Sea Serpents, were the naval force of Xersia, had left a city called Catarlacus headed for Mpya Stedor with a company of Thousand Sons. According to Bannihal, their mission was to unload near the city, take plain clothes, and infiltrate the city. Once inside, determine if DaMaximus was willing to champion the Ulandian cause for the Rejoining to Kaliphlin. If not, they were to take down the Golden Windows factory to hurt the city’s economy. Damaximus was not happy when this was read out loud, but Erudhalion reminded him that they should stay as objective as possible here, as they did not know if Bannihal was telling the truth, or even if he was a Desert King agent. Phlici seemed to think that the latter must be the case. The ship left Ulandus, but had one Leander rebel stowaway in the cargo hold. As it neared the Lesser Spice Isles, the agent began drilling two large holes in the hold. This caused the vessel to take on water, and in an attempt to make land, the ship was crashed upon a rocky reef in front of the Isle of Krag (their name for the island, Dugal had no idea which Lesser Spice Island it was.) The Leander got to shore where he hid himself to watch what unfolded next. Shipwrecked! by gid617, on Flickr The Isle of Krag is apparently inhabited by an isolationist tribe, for when they saw the boat crashed upon the reef of their island, they went on the warpath. Storming the beach in full war paint, the men of the island shot arrow after arrow into each 12th Legionnaire trying to make the beach. Many of the soldiers were lost in the wreck, and all of their supplies lay on the reef or at the bottom of the sea. Eventually a few survivors made it to the rocky shore of the island where they attempted a last assault on the beach. Shipwrecked! by gid617, on Flickr In the end, the islanders were too strong for the depleted crew. Shipwrecked! by gid617, on Flickr As the islanders recovered much of the 12th Legion’s goods, the last of the bodies floated back out to sea. Shipwrecked! by gid617, on Flickr At nightfall, the Leander agent snuck back onto the reef and took the ship’s boat back to Ulandus. “Well they are brake, no matter who they really side with, I will give them that. “ Dugal said. “If it is true” Said Siedna “Agreed.” Dugal said. Ageven put down the scroll, “If this is true, these Leander may be actually working for the Desert King. If that is true, we may be playing into his hands by supporting the rebellion.” “I think it is best that we stay neutral, and post an army in Western Kaliphlin as a peace keeping force.” Gideon said. “We have two distinct problems, the Desert King in the North, who has yet to make his intentions clear, and the Ulandians in the South who have stated that they are enemies of the Desert King.” “Why would we need any army? Let them fight it out, and if we have to, we will destroy the winner.” Lord Bain said, he had entered into the council chambers after the Leanders had left. Isabella had come back too. “Lord Bain, your lands may sit cozy on the other side of Kaliphlin, but if those two armies want to fight each other, they are going to march through what little fertile land between Ulandus and Sultan’s Gate. They are going to have to eat, they are going to cause trouble, and likely they will grab any fortified town they can along the way to hold an advantage over the other. Once they get dug in, they will be impossible to get out. We need to set up a road block.” Said Ageven . “Auner has already been shaken hard by the Great Disturbance. We can’t afford any more trouble.” “We could always take Lord DaMaximus’ army to his home city, that would surely stop the two forces.” Bain chimed in. Here we go again… thought Dugal. +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= There was one other piece of intelligence from Bannihal that interested Dugal – it was an overview of the Legions of Xersia and what their current missions were. It also described their uniforms. He learned that even though there was a uniformed color for each legion, the armor and appearance of soldiers within the legion varied from company to company, and even squad to squad. Untitled-4 by skaforhire, on Flickr Untitled-5 by skaforhire, on Flickr

An Order Divided (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 12) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 An Order Divided Thanks to Mike S. Who built these two awesome builds. Petitioning the Kaliphlin Council by -Mike S-, on Flickr Octo Vargood of Dunladeen was still hungry. That Small Council Meeting took it out of him. All the screaming, the Ulandians kicked out by Bain Ba’Elder, Bain Ba’Elder got slapped by Phlici Maderni, Kyban had to separate them, and all the while it seemed that everyone had forgotten Flagg was dead. Now he was at the emergency High Council meeting, and nobody could forget Dextrus Flagg. Seven long memorials read by various members of the council, even a poem was read! When he died, Octo just wanted someone to dump his body into the ocean and use their time to wine and dine on jumbo shrimp and the finest wine in the realm! Finally they had resolved to come back to the issue of Flagg later. The real reason for tonight’s meeting was Ulandus. Apparently, at Masa’s behest, the council was entertaining a group from the Knights of Aslan. Octo was not so interested in this, as he only cared about merriment and money, like any good Kaliphlin lord. He often thought these high lords had too many morals, and were not the quality of the generation before them – now those men knew how to turn sand into ducats. It was sad to know that Flagg, a master of the oil industry was no longer, but it also meant that Octo’s own holdings would grow with Flagg’s business out of the picture. Someone had done him a favor this afternoon. Octo despised non-humans, and he could smell the Leander before they came through the door. “I am General Leovetus, we come to you as friends, as allies, and look for your support against Lord Kral.” “Kral? Your order’s master?” Dugal said. “Yes, but in name only. He has begun to favor human members of the order above all others.” Leovetus said. Sounds like a good guy, thought Octo. Octo could see Kral’s representative, Lady Isabella, start to fidget. It looks like there may be more trouble at this council meeting. “Why in the name of Aslan, would we help you?” She finally said. The other lords looked at her sideways, it was not often that a proxy led a conversation in these higher meetings. “I suppose you will not support us Isabella, but I speak to the rest of the Council now, as I bring forth evidence that Kral has long been associated with Ulandus. I bring with me the Leander revolt leader, Bannihal.” Leovetus presented the hard-looking Ulandian to the council. Octo yawned. “Revolt?” asked DaMaximus, “Ulandus is not united?” “I am Bannihal,” Bannihal began. “And no, there are factions within Ulandus that fight against the First Centurion. We are one of them. For almost 220 years, Leander have been forced into slavery by the Ulandians. This is our punishment for the Leander Revolt.” He cleared his throat with a small roar. “I know that Kral has been associated with Ulandus for quite some time. You see, the elite guards of the First Centurion are in fact, Leander slave warriors. Most are his trusted guardians, but we have spies amongst them. They have seen Kral come to Xersia, the capital, and meet with First Centurion many times over the years.” “This is ridiculous! There was no way to get to this island before a few months ago!” Lady Isabella objected. Petitioning the Kaliphlin Council by -Mike S-, on Flickr “That is not quite true…” Duc LeStrange said. They all turned to the often quiet Councilor. “the Petraea General Trading Company has, for some time, been in contact with Ulandus. There is a small town on the west coast of the island called Wreckton, it used to lay outside of the Void Tide.” He looked around, just noticing he had the room’s attention. “Well, we didn’t know about a First Centurion, we just knew it was where some of our sailors ended up when shipwrecked. They also supply coal and Skyfruit. You all like skyfruit! Well, that is where it comes from.” He seemed to bow under the pressure of so many eyes upon him. “We were not going to give away the secret of our monopoly! None of you would either.” “Are you saying there is a way we could take a navy to Ulandus, and your pilots know this course?” DaMaximus asked. “Yes, but I know the town is bordered by mountains, I am not sure…” LaStrange was cut off by Bannihal. “It is possible, but there is only one road to the heart of Ulandus from Wreckton. Wreckton makes its own rules, and they stay away from the Centurions. The First Centurion allows them to live in obscurity. They are not important, but you would not be able to move troops from there. The ten legions would crush your forces. If your whole navy even got to Wreckton.” “Let us back up to Lord Kral.” Isabella interrupted. “While we are divulging trade secrets, I will admit, Kral has been to Ulandus, recently, but not for years! His dealings are the same as those with Varlyrio or the other guilds. The order has business everywhere. The order IS everywhere. He is only continuing the work of Bishop Jamon, Creator rest his soul.” There were a few repeated murmurs of the phrase amongst the council. Octo sniffed. Jamon had one good quality in his mind, he dressed well and made much gold. Petitioning the Kaliphlin Council by -Mike S-, on Flickr Isabella, who Octo had now decided to woo, he liked his ladies feisty, began a new course: “Now we can see what the real motive here is. Whatever cat Leovetus dragged in from Ulandus, it does not hide the truth here.” There were a few sighs, as the lady used the racial slur, cat, to describe a Leander. Feisty and arrogant indeed, Octo could already imagine his dinner plans. “ Leovetus is power hungry. He defies the order by leading its non-human members in rebellion against its anointed leader, Lord Kral. He has courted the Desert King, and for all we know, has already signed a pact with him. He has send his ambassador to Shadowmere, and met with Lord Vladivus to bring Nocturnus against the other half of the Knights of Aslan. This is no more than an additional power play. What is wrong, Leovetus, did the nightdwellers turn you down? Why are you really here?” Leovetus responded in a fierce tone. “This is absolute nonsense and slander. I have never had contact with the desert king. I have not sent anyone to Nocturnus. I am here on the subject of the Ulandians, whom Kral has at least allied with, and who are not here just to bring peace! I bring Bannihal as proof.” Now Phlici went on the defensive. “ You are wrong!” Octo liked Phlici, it was too bad that she had fallen for a Ulandian, her new status as a High Lord made her a suitable match for Octo. Maybe if Lat’ve had an accident like Flagg… Phlici continued, “ The Ulandians are here to rejoin with Kaliphlin, nothing more. Their two legions are here to help us. The First Legion, the Thousand Suns, have been tasked with rebuilding Kaliphlin after the Great Disturbance. Right now, they are out giving out food to our hungry and rebuilding our homes! The Second Legion, the Salamanders, are here to protect our borders and bring peace and order to the realm. With so much disaster, our troops are spread thin from slavers, raiders, invaders, and drow! We need our brothers from Ulandus and their troops in our time of need. There is no question that they should be brought into the fold and reunited with Kaliphlin.” She really had gained some confidence since Flagg died and made her queen of the northern something or other… actually Octo had never paid attention to whatever title Flagg was supposed to hold over this town or that town. He didn’t care in the slightest. “I agree,” Isabella said, “We have no proof that they are here for any other purpose than the one they say. We do have proof that Leovetus is a sniveling coward that is trying to backstab us all!” And with that outburst, Siedna, a newer member to the council herself, said “I put forth a motion to remove the proxy of Lord Kral from the council session. Her personal attacks are out of hand, with no evidence, and she is bringing too much hostility to the chamber. We all know where Kral’s opinion stands, we don’t need her here right now.” “Seconded.” DaMaximus said. “All in favor” Siedna said. About nine of the fourteen presence said “Aye.” Isabella got up and stormed out of the room. Octo saw an opportunity and followed her out. +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Dugal had cautioned Phlici to hold her tongue in this meeting, but that had been ignored. She had tried to find holes in Bannihal’s story for some time now, but without luck. The rebel Leanders had taken the fight to the northern most cities of Ulandus, these cities were not under the direct control of the First Centurion, but were controlled by warlords that seemed to have a culture very similar to Southeastern Kaliphlin. They dressed similarly, they fought similarly, and they even ate some of the same strange delicacies as those Kaliphlinites across the Rakath Mountains. Bannihal thought that these northern cities were weaker, and that the ten legions rarely operated in the Northern cities. Still, the Northern cities were loyal to First Centurion, who they also addressed as Emperor. Dugal saw a problem at this juncture with this Ulandian plan for a “rejoining” to Kaliphlin. Kaliphlin was ran by a High Council, and this was even more true now that Flagg was dead. There was no direct leader, although they may have to elect a wartime leader if the Council takes a side in this war between the Ulandians and the Desert King. Dugal wanted to stay neutral. Bannihal was describing First Centurion at this point “He is tall, seemingly ageless, and has a pair of wings like an eagle.” The 1st Centurion by -Mike S-, on Flickr “So he is not human?” asked Gideon. “In every other way he is” Replied Bannihal. “Although he is immensely powerful, we know not if it is magic, natural ability, or something else.” “Tell us more about Ulandus, do they really have 10,000 troops? Ten Legions?” Asked DaMaximus. “More. Xersia alone has ten legions. The northern cities have at least 4,000 men at arms between the two cities. The Xersia is the guardian of the southern cities, so they only have a rudimentary guardian force.” Bannihal said. “Then there is the navy.” LeStrange nodded to this, apparently the PGTC had encountered the fleet of Ulandus before. The Leander continued to describe the throne room of First Centurion, the opulence, the grander, and the demand for total loyalty within Xersia and the other “sister cities.” It was clear that First Centurion ruled the whole island… making it hard again for Dugal to swallow letting five new high councilmen into Kaliphlins inner circle – considering rarely do 15 show up to meetings, this would give them a sizable voting bloc. And how many lower lords did they want to add to Kaliphlin’s ranks? The 1st Centurion by -Mike S-, on Flickr “The people of Ulandus are generally honorable, yet steeped in history. Whereas people of the mainland have forgotten the sinking of Ulandus, the children of the subcontinent know every story of the Great Breaking, and learn about the prophecies of the Rejoining. They have prepared 2000 years for this day. And I tell you, they don’t just want to be part of Kaliphlin, First Centurion means to rule.” Bannihal finished. The 1st Centurion by -Mike S-, on Flickr “This is nonsense.” Phlici said, “You are obviously scared from your time as a slave. We need a second opinion, if we just invited Lat’ve in here…” Bannihal cut her off. “Lat’ve is here?!? He is one of their highest intelligence officers! This guild hall could be crawling with Sand Wolf spies!” “Sand wolf?” Dugal asked. “The third legion is the subterfuge and spy arm of Xersia.” Bannihal said. “If Lat’ve is here, the First Centurion knows exactly what we are talking about.” He looked panicked. “I must go, my men are in trouble! I opened my mouth up about the spies to the wrong chamber.” He turned to Leovetus “You should have told me there were Ulandians in the capital, I fear this was a foolish errand indeed.” He turned and rushed out of the room leaving the Aslanic Leanders looking at one another in disbelief.

Falling Apart (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 11) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Falling Apart They immediately reconvened the small council, there were many matters to discuss with Flagg’s death looming over them. Dugal though that it would have been wiser if they combed Petraea for the other high lords to make sure no one else had been assassinated. However, the circumstances surrounding Flagg’s death did not sit well with him. Dugal knew a thing or two about being assassinated, and he figured that there just was something odd with the Sorceress’ story. DSC_1504 by skaforhire, on Flickr One of the reasons that they reconvened was because there were ambassadors from both Ulandus and the Desert King to see the council. Procedure said that these emissaries had to be invited by a High Lord to speak in front of the High Council, since both sets of emisarries were associated with low lords, they had to be introduced to a Small Council first. First up were the Ulandians, who were the guest of Phlici Maderni. But, High Lord Bain Ba’Elder would not yield the floor. “I believe this is even more evidence that we need to take troops from Eastgate and distribute them to the rest of the Realm. We should also make a formal request that Lord DaMaximus bring his troops back to Western Eastern Kaliphlin, where we now know the Ulandian threat originates from. They have assassinated our leader!” Bain was beginning to get into a bellicose raving now. Phlici got a word in. “The last I heard, it was a Dark Elf that killed Flagg. Not a Ulandian, unless you know something we don’t?” she paused, but laid it on him. “Perhaps you are associated with the killer? And, why would we talk about removing troops from the West, this is the Small Council for Western Affairs! What are you plotting at?” Bain was outraged. “You care challenge a High Lord? We all know where you loyalties lie, we know the stories!” Dugal threw a glance at Gideon to see his reaction; they had spoken about Phlici’s “closeness” to the Ulandians before this meeting. Sand’s End was important for protecting the border, and neither of the two high lords wanted to see Ulandians doing that protecting. DSC_1595 by skaforhire, on Flickr Gideon seemed lost in thought, he had just told the council about the grain shortage in Barqa – Dugal knew that part of the shortage was due to his army needing supplies over the last year. Everyone had been stretched thin. Phlici roared back “And we know that you have taken money from the Desert King! You are not neutral on this council either.” That made Gideon, Lord Octo(who had joined for this second session), Kyban Wh'Ali, and Dugal’s eyes bulge. Bain was taking money from the Sand King? She continued. “And I bow no longer to you, high lord. With Flagg’s Passing, his title of Guardian of the North Gate passes to my family, for he has no heir. I am your equal, but I suspect in reality, your better.” She smirked. For the first time that Dugal could recall, Bain was speechless. Kyban, in his slow Petraean drawl filled the silence. “You are taking money from the Desert King?” Bain quickly rebounded, and began to beat around the palm tree. “Do you know this famine spreads further than the Arkbri Valley? It is not only Barqa’s storehouses that flounder in this drought. Let me tell you the tale of Sin’ta-da’Leen. “ (Builds by Goliath – Thank you! ) Kaliphlin Challenge - Starvation by The Goliath, on Flickr) “The people of this village, that all of you have stepped through at one time, are starving. It has gotten so bad that food vendors outside the town will not bring their dwindling wares because of what happened two weeks ago. The populace so hungry that they had turned to eating their racing ostriches finally succumbed to the madness of hunger. “ Kaliphlin Challenge - Starvation by The Goliath, on Flickr “They became cannibals! Two weeks ago they attacked a food wagon and even ate it’s driver and “guards. Kaliphlin Challenge - Starvation by The Goliath, on Flickr “Money in their pocket, they couldn’t buy food! They couldn’t even wait to make a transaction. Clearly Madness reigns in the outskirts of Kaliphlin.” He cleared his throat letting some of the more squeamish lords try to keep their lunch down. “So, if I have entertained an offer from our former King, who promises stability, who OWNS one of the greatest legends of all Kaliphlinites, who has the money and the might to put together our salvation, is there really a wrong here? Are we bound to a leader, especially without Flagg being present for the last two years? How… how dare you ask me in an accusing tone if I took his money? We are Kaliphlinites, we seize every opportunity!” His cronies clapped. Clapped! Even Kyban seemed to nod to this logic and Bain’s tirade. But that was not all. Bain surely seized the moment again. “It is not just food shortages, and warlords, but slavelords are starting to emerge from the sands. We all signed Flagg’s pact, no Kaliphlin citizen shall be slave, and all slaves must be taken on raids outside of the Guild or from prisoners. Well, without might, without troops – troops that Dugal hogs in his precious war for inheritance – Kaliphlinites can’t travel the oil road without protection. The illicit slavers are bolder than ever, even coming into Petraea! We need strength. We need a king again. You all know your history, Kaliphlin was the most powerful nation in the world at one point, and we owned all of Historica! Cedrica was a sapling to our mighty Kaligem! And now, our great Pharaoh has returned, and you hesitate to throw up the old banners in support?” By Kai: (Thanks, Kai! ) kai by Kai, on Flickr Slave Gang by gid617, on Flickr Slave Gang by gid617, on Flickr Everyone began talking at once. Dugal lashed back at Bain, “Do you work for Petera? Why are you so keen on seeing Eastgate stay in his hands?” But, Bain probably did not hear it over the screaming from Kylee at Octo, who was making crass comments about how perhaps Kaliphlin needed a few more slave girls to spice things up. Kyban was trying to contact the guard about something. Gideon was speaking across the table to Ral’ai, a minor lord and Bain crony. Gais Elmore, awoken from his sudden nap, nearly slapped Bandari Milsion, for a reason Dugal could not determine. The council was breaking down. DSC_1513 by skaforhire, on FlickrDSC_1513 by skaforhire, on Flickr Then came a voice that was not of the council. “There are other means to order. Your Sand Prince, is fooling you. Take his money, and you will see it sift through your fingers like the substance he beds in.” Dugal turned to see Phlici bringing three men into the chamber. Ulandians… The one in blue armor, a man late in his forties, but still with distinguishing good looks spoke. “I am General Latrix Veringetrix, but my sand name is Lat’ve. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.” “Who said you could enter this chamber?” Bain cut of Kyban before he could do his duty and Lord Protector of the Council. “I did.” Phlici said. “These men are the ambassadors from Ulandus.” Although the man in the blue uniform was talking ,Dugal could sense that the one in red was in charge. “This is Captain Castrix,” she said motioning to the one in green, “and this is General Royce Ponce, the representative of the First Centurion of Ulandus.” DSC_1522 by skaforhire, on Flickr Ponce, in red, began to speak. “ We understand that we must be presented to the High Council by a high lord. Thus we seek one of the High Lords in this room to champion our cause.” “There is no need Royce, I am a high lord now.” Phlici said. “We seek another.” Ponce said coldly. Dugal watched as she pulled her hand off Lat’ve’s arm. Perhaps the Ulandians were not a keen on the lady’s quick love connection with their general. Dugal figured Phlici was not politically viable to them because of this romance. “So what do you want? Why do you come to Kaliphlin with armies?” Gideon said. DSC_1517 by skaforhire, on Flickr “We do not come to Kaliphlin, we are Kaliphlin!” Ponce began. “Our separation nearly two thousand years ago was because of the Pharaoh Ark'Mora Raa. He sunk the great mountain, and rose the Void Tide to separate us from our brothers and sisters in Kaliphlin.” Dugal had always heard that it was a volcano that sunk the island city of Ulandus. Most scholars at the university said Ulandus was a myth. “If he destroyed your city, how did you come to be today?” asked Gideon. “Ulandus is not just one city, it is a region the size of Or’loral.” Castrix replied. “Or’loral?” Kylee said. “Er, I mean Gorr. I think that is what you call it now.” Castrix replied. Gorr!?! That was a sizable island. “We seek to rejoin our guild, our people, and be equals once more. We want our cities to have representatives on the high council.” Ponce said. “How many cities are on Ulandus?” Dugal Asked. kaliphlin-south-east by skaforhire, on Flickr “ Five that would be considered High Lord status.” Ponce replied. “Five? Surely they are not all great cities?” Bain said. “Xersea, First Centurion’s Throne, is as large as Ancient Kaligem.” Lat’ve said. Everyone sat in silence for a second. Bain was the first to open his mouth. “The real question is, if the Desert King can sink cities, and you are the 2000 year old enemy of the Desert King, why would we side with you?” “Because the Desert King seeks to control you all, not live with you as equals. This is why he destroyed Ulandus, because we rose in revolt as our freedoms dwindled.” Ponce continued. “We are your natural allies. DSC_1519 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Gotta shake it up. Esterbroke was already on the map though, we just used it first. Ulandus is new.

I didn't say this in the PM because I forgot, but this is the first time I have seen sewer openings in a medieval city -- that and the road itself is brilliant.

P.S. I suppose some explanation is needed here for the new people. Flagg is SI-Moc's original sigfig for GoH back when he was Kaliphlin guild leader. He is a Sci-Fi Mod, so this was a nod to him departing from us to go back to sci-fi. I didn't rip off stargate just for fun... well perhaps for a little fun.

The Death of Flagg (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 9) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 The Death of Flagg “And then I ran, and the Drow assassin chased me, but I finally remembered an invisibility spell, which saved my life!” The Sorceress Nefrillia concluded. DSC_1617 by skaforhire, on Flickr Kyban Wh'Ali of Khar'dek, current Lord Protector in council almost looked sick to his stomach as he investigated the mess. Two dead mage professors at the University of Petraea on his watch, and the leader of Kaliphlin disappeared and assumed dead. Dugal pitied the man, Bain and other High Council members were going to have a field day with this when the High Council met tonight. DSC_1622 by skaforhire, on Flickr “Are you sure Dextrus did not make it through the portal safely?” Lady Kylee asked. Nefrilla replied with eerie confidence “ when the Drow attacked us, and killed Professor Parker, it sent a backlash through the ritual stone. Flagg had crossed the threshold of the gate and was completely dematerialized at the time. As the backlash came back to the gate there was a red glow, and then it spit out Flagg’s shield.” She sighed, “ I am sorry, he is just… gone. The magic must have ripped him into a million particles.” That was a disturbing thought… “and you say that he was trying to reach Kathyrin? I thought her dead?” Gideon asked. “Indeed, he had us switch the polarity of the artifact to try and travel to the underworld using the hole Dugal crawled out of last year.” Nefrilla answered. “Well, this is definitely his shield.” Bain said, placing Dextrus Flagg’s most recognizable possession back on the ground. Dugal looked around the large room in the University of Petraea's Sciences and Magic building, “How does a Drow assassin hide in a pristine white room?” The rest of the council looked just as confused. +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= An hour earlier… Dextrus Flagg seemed extremely giddy, and more excited than he had in months. Rolo Audek, Flagg’s bodyguard was not as happy as his friend and master. He and Barden Warwalker, a famed undead hunter, were about to accompany Flagg through some sort of gate to the netherworld. Kaliphlin scientists and mages just recently got the Simultaneous Transport and Retrieval gate to work between gates in Kaliphlin, now they wanted to go to new planes? However, Sorceress Nefrillia, Professor Parker, and Clemte E. Pilsin, adventurer mage extraordinaire, assured their guild leader that the gate was ready for interdimensional travel. DSC_1603 by skaforhire, on Flickr “So this will take us to the hole near Queencross that Dugal came out of? And then to the underworld?” Flagg asked again. “Something like that, but you are thinking of the Stargate too limitedly, it does not travel in a path, but in a straight line between planes of existence.” Said Parker, and he was immediately interrupted by Pilsin. “Yer mean STRgate. “And” cannot be in the acronym! It is a STR gate!” Pilsin chimed. He was pronouncing it like “stir gate” and it was clear that the two had gone through the semantics before. “That sounds terrible, it is stargate.” Parker said, the clearly more educated of the two. “STRRRRRGATE!” I build the ritual stone and was the first traveler through the gate, I get to name it.” He declared. “STRRRRGATE.” Flagg interjected. “I don’t care about the name, can you make it home in on Kathyrin?” “That is not how it works” Both Pilsin and Parker chimed in. Nefrilla was oddly quiet. Barden patted Flagg on the back, “That is why you have me, sir. I can find her, no matter where in the seven hells she is.” “There actually are not se…” Pilsin started, but Flagg cut him off. “Very well, let’s get this started.” The three mages gathered around the ritual stone and began to pour magic into the small ruby looking stone. DSC_1604 by skaforhire, on Flickr Soon, the gate began to glow and then a water like surface appeared within the circle. Dex2 by skaforhire, on Flickr Rolo took up his position at the front, climbed the ramp, held his breath, and crossed the threshold. It was cold and then the world went black. Dex4 by skaforhire, on Flickr +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= The first two travelers went through the Strgate. Pilson was overjoyed that other humans were finally getting to experience gate travel! Flagg was about to step in when Nefrilla said “Oh Flagg, you can’t take that shield!” Parker and Pilson both looked at their comrade with a quizzical glance, but she continued. “The silver plating will not pass into the next realm, it could kill you or send the gate somewhere else!” Pilson looked at Parker. That was not true, there was no metal that could not travel through the gate, at least that they knew of. However, before Pilson could find words, Flagg yelled “thanks!” ran down the ramp, put the shield down, and ran back up the ramp to dive through the strgate. dex0 by skaforhire, on Flickr As soon as he was through, Nefrilla immediately let go of her magical stream, and the portal winked out of existence. Pilson was unable to question her, for before he could speak a knife quickly flashed in Nefrilla’s hands. She stabbed Parker in the neck, and Pilson wet himself. He turned to run, and he heard her cackle with amusement. He may have got fifteen paces before he felt a cold object pierce his lower back. DSC_1612 by skaforhire, on Flickr He gulped. She turned the knife, and pulled up hard. He began to choke. So this is how his life ended, well it had been a good one, he had written books… lots of books… seen the rise and fall of many men and women who led historica… had even been the court jes… he closed his eyes. He knew he would not sleep forever, heck maybe he would even see Flagg on the other side. Dex5 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Bring In Your Dead (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 8) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Bring In Your Dead (Special thanks to Jorrith here, who put this build together within 24 hours of me asking him to. All pictures in this chapter are his.) 364586b by 1, on Flickr Wuulin felt fear for the first time in a long time. Sure, he had been in the presence of undead before, but none as intimidating as Lord Vladivus, Lord Anfauglir, and Lord Mortis. Perhaps this was the reason his master, the Desert King Ark'Mora Raa, had decided to seek an alliance with them. He also knew his master hated the Black Spire. When he last roamed the earth, Nocturnus was part of Kaliphlin, and the source of the curse that allowed Raa to rise again in this present era. 364591 by 3, on Flickr He had brought two domesticated Sand Scorpions for Lord Vladivus, he had heard the lord had a taste for unique and interesting things, and he thought the rarest pet in Kaliphlin might catch the lord’s interest. He continued on with his speech “as you can see, my master wishes only friendship with you and your cause.” He directed his words to Vladivus as instructed, but knew that what he had to say was meant for all three of the rebellion’s leaders. “After Kaliphlin is firmly under the old dynasty again, her troops will be at your call for your final assault on the Black Spire. My master is very interested in a close alliance with a region he feels so akin to.” Although many Leander had joined the Desert King, Wuulin was one of the few that was still “whole.” Most had been afflicted with the mountain mummy curse, and indeed the mountain mummies made up the majority of Raa’s forces. It was only natural to make an alliance with the capital of the undead. Wuulin glanced up at Lord Mortis and Anfauglir, they seemed to be judging him, or maybe judging his cause. 364590 by 2, on Flickr Vladivus spoke in a calculated, cool tone. “Your offer is… intriguing. However, as far as we have heard, Kaliphlin already has a ruler, what makes you think that he will give up his place for the old Pharaoh?” “My master assures you that Flagg will be no obstacle.” Wuulin said. “Nobody has seen him in years. He has been a recluse since his sister was taken. The High Council runs Kaliphlin, and they are divided and weak. My master is confident he will be able to secure their loyalty within the month. They look and desire for leadership in this troubled time.” “And what of the Ulandians?” Vladivus said. “We hear there is another army within Kaliphlin.” “My master remembers when Ulandus was part of Kaliphlin, he remembers sinking their island after they tried to defy his rule!” he replied. “ It is a shame some of them survived, and their descendants found another island to call home, but the Desert King does not fear the Sea Peoples.” He quickly added, “perhaps they will see the error of their ancestors and pledge loyalty quickly, or maybe we will just sink their new island.” He thought he heard a chuckle from somewhere in the chamber, maybe the guard? “You have given us much to think about Ambassador Wuulin. No go, be a guest in Shadowmere, you will have your answer in a fortnight.” And with the Vladivus turned and left, leaving Wuulin staring at a guard. =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Lord Vladivus, Anfauglir, and Mortis discussed the new proposition. 364587 by 4, on Flickr “He could be a powerful ally against the Spire” Angauglir said. “But can we really divide our forces?” Mortis asked. “Who says we have to send him our best forces?” Vladivus replied. “All of us have followers that may be better off away from the action here, those we least trust, or those that may challenge our leadership.” “I am still not convinced that a full commitment should be made.” Mortis said. Angauglir concluded “So we speak more on this tonight, for now there are matters to attend to.”

Unfortunately, the Red troops don't look as good, I think I need another common accessory...

I knew they were clearancing out most places, so I thought that would allow everyone to get a couple, if they decide to represent the Ulandians in that way. As we will see soon... the Ulandians have two types of armies, the ten legions and another set that is more eastern in their appearance. Also, my-collaborator on the Ulandian stuff (besides NM and his mapmaking), Mike S, also has some problems with the armor, but we agreed that people could represent the legions in other ways too. More will be revealed about their organization and color schemes soon.

Way to poor on the awesome lately! I would be interested in seeing the ball joints in action if you have a picture (which of course may not be possible from where they may be placed) That is a great idea.

Hanging in the Balance (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 7) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Hanging in the Balance Small Council by skaforhire, on Flickr Dugal sat with his arms crossed. This small council meeting was not going well. This was one of the various small councils, where a few of the High Lords met with a group of Low Lords in order to make decisions for the different regions of Kaliphlin. Most of the time the High Lords did not even make these meetings, as the real lifting happened in the High Lord Council. Dugal was only in Petraea because of the emergency council meeting that was scheduled for that night. This meeting was made up of some of the western lords of Kaliphlin, but the only high lords in attendance were Gideon, Bain Ba’Elder or , Kyban Wh'Ali of Khar'dek and himself. Kyban, was currently serving as the Lord Protector of the Council, so he was the only person besides the guards allowed to have a weapon in the building. It was actually a good turnout of high lords, even if it was mandatory that Kyban attend due to his position. Most of the minor lords had left already, but Bain had just taken the floor, and would probably not yield for some time. He always complained about Eastgate’s control of the Red River, and did not like the taxes placed on merchants from his town upstream. So he was usually an enemy of the MacLeans, but Dugal had not seen him in a while. It was surprising that he began to talk about something else. “I wish to call for a fund to help the westlands rebuild from the Great Disturbance.” Melki O’teel, one of Bain’s lower lord lackeys seconded the motion and began to talk about some of the building efforts East of his village. Earthquake In Kaliphlin by BrickCurve, on Flickr (Thank You BrickCurve!) Earthquake In Kaliphlin by BrickCurve, on Flickr It seemed that efforts were beginning quickly, as it had only been a few weeks. But, the odd thing about the story was that Sea People troops were going around the countryside helping rebuild damaged towns. That was odd. Melki droned on. Dugal almost lost track of his surroundings, thinking of ways in which GEAR Co. could help, and still make a profit… after they get Eastgate back from his brother Petera, that is. However, he snapped back into the present when he heard Bain’s next talking point. DSC_3845 by skaforhire, on Flickr “I move to send a motion to the High Council to take Eastgate’s supply of Kaliphlin Guild troops away. The siege there has taken much of our guild’s resources over the last year, and it is still a stalemate, even after a victory for Lord Dugal at the Wither Woods! Let him use his own troops.!” He was cheered by his cronies, but that was almost half the table. Even Gais Elmor, a once proud member of GEAR Co. sat in silence, seemingly pondering the resolution. “This is ridiculous.” Dugal said. “We must apply pressure to Eastgate, we cannot let Petera escape – he is more powerful than his master, Revolword!” “So you say,” Bain said. “But Petera has never actually threatened anything but your birthright! He has yet to threaten any part of the rest of Kaliphlin.” “Except Queencross!” Lady Kylee protested. “He sent the assassin to kill Dugal and stop the Army! Then he aided the enemy against Paulos during the battle of Queenscross! He is a danger to us all.” Dugal was glad his wife’s friend had taken her father’s seat on the low council, she would be a good ally. DSC_1514 by skaforhire, on Flickr “We only know half of that is true, and still, living in the past will only doom us. There are real threats, present threats before us. These Ulandians or Sea People that Phlici has told us about, the Desert King, and worst of all, the Great Disturbance’s aftermath,” Bain stated. Lady Phlici tried to interject here and disagree that her new friends were not a threat – now that was a weird situation that would have to be addressed—but Bain continued over her. DSC_3847 by skaforhire, on Flickr He directed his attack directly at Dugal, meeting his eyes. “You have one of the most powerful personal armies in Historica at your command, yet you have not been able to take Eastgate. You even have Guild troops at your disposal, and perhaps the most powerful army in Historica, Lord DaMaximus’s army with you at Eastgate. You should have broken your brother by now!” “We are close.” Dugal said, he did not want to divulge any secret information, he knew an attack was coming in the next few weeks, but he had no idea if Bain would warn Petera or not. At this point Gideon interrupted Bain who was about to continue. “Perhaps we should let this matter rest while we talk about the Sea People and the Desert King. After all, we are not sure we need an army for either side – they have not threatened anyone yet. “ DSC_3841 by skaforhire, on Flickr Bain snarled, “They might not be an immediate risk, but let me tell you about South Sandstruck. This Kaliphlin town, and others that are too small to have strong standing forces are being hit every day! Warlords that do not give their allegiance to Kaliphlin and Flagg prey on those who pay their dues to our guild! That is what we need the troops for, and who knows, maybe even in time we will need them against the Sea People!” Sandstruck by South Sandstruck, on Flickr by Nice Marmot! Again Lady Phlici began to object, but she was cut off by screaming in the hall. “FLAGG IS DEAD! DEXTRUS FLAGG IS DEAD!” The small council broke up, and Dugal headed toward the commotion.

Forging Alliances (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 6) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Forging Alliances fortifying by skaforhire, on Flickr It was a long night at the Crown Inn for Lady Phlici Maderni of Sand’s End. Smaley had not caught the would-be assassin, and the town was on high alert. So it was even more disheartening when she awoke near dawn to the shouts of the guards, and the ringing of the warning bells. Three Bells, army spotted. She grabbed her dress from the previous day and hurriedly put it on. She was met in the common room of the inn by Ronalo Suarn, the mayor, he was frantic. “A man in blue marches in front of a host of green soldiers. The identifying marks are foreign to me, my lady!” He belted out. This was disturbing, Ronalo was one of the smartest men she knew, he also knew every major sigil in Historica. She prepared for the worst…. =+=+=+=+=+= Three hours later Phlici was standing in front of her inn with General Latrix Veringetrix, but he had told her his ”high sands name” was Lat’ve. He was a good looking man, in his 40s, strong, confident, and somewhat attractive. It was not his looks that got him through the gates of Sand’s End though. Phlici had been hailed by this foreign army when they approached the city. They flew a flag of truce and she was accompanied by Smaley to the parle. Before she left she made sure that every troop she had was on the front wall – she had to look like she had many banner men. She met the leader, dressed in Green. He said his name was Castrix, and he demanded she open her gates to his army, the Salamanders of Ulandia – the sunken city? She asked herself. He looked to have about fifty men at his command… but 20 of these were no man at all… they were insectoid creatures, stuff she only heard rumored from the Rakath mountains. As she was lost in thought, Castrix snapped again “We demand water and shelter, and that your gates are open to us.” She was about to call the whole parle off, when a man in a similar uniform, but blue walked up behind Castrix. “Captain Castrix, there is no need for this, I am sure Lady Maderni will be happy to have a few extra Kaliphlin soldiers held up in her town.” He introduced himself as Latrix, and then. She had 28 men, most of them fat and old, she had no choice. She could not afford a siege right now. So now, just a few hours later she was playing host to a military spectacle. The Salamanders, actually, only one twentieth of the whole legion, as Lat’ve was quick to point out, stood in her market displaying their arms. DSC_3863 by skaforhire, on Flickr “The bug things seem to have no order to them” she said to her guest. “They do what their masters bid in combat, and nothing more, my lady.” Lat’ve said. “ It would be waste of effort to have them line up in squares like the human troops.” He had explained earlier that these were a bug people from Ulandus, and that they were sworn into the Second Legion as harsh melee fighters. He also explained that most enemies surrendered before the “Kalcheta,” swarmers in the modern tongue, before they had to face them. He concluded with a line about the swarmers eating their enemies in the middle of battle. This sounded to her like the fierce battle gnomes of the Witherwoods. She took a quick inventory of the 1st company of the Second Legion. 20 swarmers, ten heavy fighters, 10 pike, and 10 tritons. An interesting compliment. “Where is the rest of the Legion? How many are there?” Lat’ve was slow to answer, as if he was deciding what to divulge. “Each legion has funding for 1000 soldiers. There are twenty companies in this legion.” Twenty companies??? More than one legion??? She was amazed at the numbers – how did they get all the way up here without being noticed by the eyes and ears of the Kaliphlin intelligence agencies? He continued “The Salamanders have been tasked by First Centurion to defend Kaliphlin during the Rejoining, their companies are scattered to all ends of the Guild for this purpose.” She had been told earlier that the Rejoining was the name for the process of bringing Ulandus back into Kaliphlin, as it was 1000 years ago before its sinking. She also learned that “general” and “captain” were just ranks that they were calling themselves to not sound foreign to the Kaliphlinites. Lat’ve’s real title was Third Centurion, while Castrix was a Fourth Centurion. As far as she could figure, there were many Second, Third, Fourth, fifth, etc… centurions, but only one first centurion – the leader of Ulandus DSC_3861 by skaforhire, on Flickr She watched as Castrix took his position on her walls to deliver a speech to her town, her troops, and the Salamanders. She started to wonder if it was her town anymore. Castrix began to speak. “Legionaries, centurions, fellow Kaliphlinites, lend me your ears.” He had a booming voice. “We come today as friends, as Kaliphlinites. In time you will know us as long lost brothers. Be not afraid, for we come to help take care of your border trouble here in Sand’s End. Tomorrow we will march out and take care of the bandit problem, the problem your leaders have not had the strength to handle.” She began to speak, but Lat’ve put a hand on her arm and whispered “He is one for theatrics.” She let it go. Castrix continued, “we will put down the Avalonian Scourge on the King’s way, tame the centaur menace to the north, and we have already put the sand bandits of the south in their place – the grave. Rejoice now that your brothers have come, eat, drink, be merry, know that peace has come to Kaliphlin again, and that the Great Disturbance is over. We are the Salamanders, we are your blood, and we shall spill our blood with you in the name of Kaliphlin!” Cheers went up from his men, and to her surprise, her men. Not her town anymore… She turned to Lat’ve, “what do you want from me?” He smiled, “your introduction and backing to the council. We wish our cities to be fully represented on the high council.” She had a feeling that this was not everything, but she could come to appreciate his smile. DSC_1563 by skaforhire, on Flickr =+=+=+=+=+=+= Three days later the Salamanders made good on their promise. salamanders by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1577 by skaforhire, on Flickr At Wagner’s Glen in the Cedrican Plains, the Salamanders met the last of the Centaur raiding parties. In phalanx formation they slaughtered almost every rogue centaur. DSC_1583 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1587 by skaforhire, on Flickr They didn’t even have to take the swarmers, and they left them in town. Phlici found this very disturbing as the they mingled with the populace. hey girl by skaforhire, on Flickr Lat’ve stayed in town too, and she learned much more about Ulandus, but by this time she was more interested in the man himself, although she could not get over his and other Ulandian’s use of Leander as slaves. DSC_1597 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Early Cartographers dispatched by Gex estimate that the island is about the size of Gorr. So about 1/8th the landmass of Kaliphlin.

Traitors at Trade Day (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 5) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Traitors at Trade Day sandsend by skaforhire, on Flickr sandendonmap by skaforhire, on Flickr Lady Phlici Maderni of Sand's End stretched as she exited the Crown Inn. This was what was left of the Maderni fortune, her husband, killed at Queenscross during the battle against Revolword’s forces, had spent most of it trying to rebuild Sand’s End and defend its people. Now, the current drought in southern Avalonia and Northern Kaliphlin left the region a ghostly semblance of its former self. All her money was tied up in this Inn, that nobody ever visited. She was still the Lady of Sand’s End, and she still sat on the Council of Lords of Kaliphlin, although her husband had once been a High Lord. However, by the look of today’s trade day, perhaps Sand’s End would no longer qualify for even a spot on the lower council. One the first defense against northern aggression, Sand’s End had lost that importance and the council money for defense, when Northwall – a smaller, yet more fortified town to the north -- was annexed over a hundred years ago. Now the guild soldier called that town home, and kept the borders safe from bandits. Except… they weren’t. The Revolword War, the drought, the Drow, and now the Great Disturbance had taken a toll on Kaliphlin. The council sent less money and soldiers to Northwall, not at all to Sand’s End. The Lord of Northwall, Pryor Rhodes, barely sent the troops at his disposal out on patrol, and now Avalonian raiders, Centaurs from the Cedrican plains, and sand bandits cropped up all over Northern Kaliphlin. Her own men, the few she could afford, had to stay within the formable walls of Sand’s End to keep order within the town – they could not be spared to save the countryside. The Trade Day was the most recent casualty to the ongoing troubles in the region. DSC_1540 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_1533 by skaforhire, on Flickr As she strode out the door she was met by her Clerk and Mayor, Ronalo Suarn, a Varlyrian immigrant. He was always asking her to tighten her wallet, or else “the city will surely fall without due frugalness.” Today was no different. “My lady,” he said without bowing, “The payment for the guards is overdue!” W “I know, you will find we have this month’s wages in the strongbox in the inn.” She walked past Stelvin Crow, the last farmer within her domain. Stelvin was still trying to sell his gigantic carrots, but everyone in Sand’s End was sick of Carrot stew. When she ignored him, he almost attacked Ronalo. “Sir! These are the best Carrots in all of Historica!” He shouted in the mayor’s face. She tuned them out and noticed a strange pale man bowing to her. She had never seen him before. She moved to talk to Olgie Artsonbrose, the local fine craftsmen and jewler. Every week he swore he was not coming back to the market day. “No customers worth a grain of salt! And I haven’t seen a ducat in weeks, so I would be happy to receive salt!” He claimed last week. She looked around the market, nobody had even rented the large wall stalls and many tables were empty of wares– this was getting bad indeed. DSC_1543 by skaforhire, on Flickr She finally noticed her one-eyed guard captain, Smaley Al’Green, behind her. He was her only bodyguard nowadays. Olgie’s wares were fine, but also the same wares she had seen last week… and the week before… and the week before that. It looked like he really hadn’t moved any merchandise these last few trade days. She turned to Smaley, “Do you know who the man with the funny hat was? Where is he selling from?” “M’ladee” he said in one drawn out word, “ I am’nt aquainted wit da place he claims to call home, Ulanta I think?” he cleared his throat, “ But there’s ‘nother merch from tha place too. He brings books.” Books? She thought, incredible! She had not had a new book in her hand since her last visit to Petraea. She next went to Nelva’s table. DSC_1545 by skaforhire, on Flickr Nelva’s pitch was new. “I’ve got what this town needs, a baby mummy! He is the son of the risen Desert King!” She exclaimed. “ Only 100 Ducats! Think of the power you will bring to this town My Lady!” IF Only Nelva knew that Phlici barely had 100 ducats left, and by the turnout today, it looks like nobody would be staying in the inn tonight, and the receipts from table and stall rentals will be almost non-existent. Instead of answering Nelva directly, she turned to Ronalo, who was still being harassed by Stelvin, and said “Check if Nelva has the proper permit to sell ‘mummies’ within Kaliphlin Borders.” Nelva breathed quickly, an audible snort and blurted “well, maybe it is not a real baby mummy.” Phlici moved on to the Avalonian selling wine and beer. She hated that the only trader making money today was from Avalonia. She knew that Kendrick had free passage from the Avalonian raiders who now controlled the Cedrica Road. The same raiders that have kept her from making the last two council meetings. She turned to Smaely and said “Make sure that we collect all the taxes from this one.” DSC_1546 by skaforhire, on Flickr She bypassed the funny man with the weird hat’s table, it was basic prettys, but nothing she desired, and moved to the book cart. DSC_1553 by skaforhire, on Flickr “Greetings M’Lady, a caped man with a hook said with a very heavy southern Kaliphlin accent. “Are you a fan of the great works? I have many indeed.” He gave her a quick smile, but she was already thumbing through the titles. Edwin Kalphrate’s Seven Great Battles of Kaliphlin --- first edition!!!! Kaliphlin Proverbs and other short stories, author unknown. 1001 Tales of Princess Ali’De Shek Curlzon’s Greater Plane of Existence Smaley interrupted her. “I don’t like his slave.” He whispered to Phlici. Smaley didn’t like slaves in general, and Phlici refused to let them be traded within the town limits as her own distaste for the institution was widely known. However, they were allowed to come into the city. She glanced over and noticed a Leander man staring down Smaley – He had many scars, and did look on edge. However, she went back to look at the titles. Finally she asked “ Where are you from?” “I am one of First Centurion’s subjects.” He replied. “Who?” “I am from Ulandus” She looked at him hard now. “The sunken city?” “Much more than a city my lady, and we were never sunk, just lost. But that has all changed.” He smiled. Well, wherever this fool came from, he had some great books – many that had dates of publication hundreds of years ago that she had not heard of! He glee was then interrupted as Smaley threw her to the ground. DSC_1555 by skaforhire, on Flickr From the copse of trees came a very quick man, Phlici could not get a good look, but she was fairly sure he was Avalonian. Smaley parried the man’s blows as the Leander Slave jumped in front of his master who hit the ground also. Before she knew it the would-be assassin was dashing away with Smaley in pursuit. DSC_1556 by skaforhire, on Flickr Ronalo grabbed her and got her back inside the inn, where they bolted the door – definitely not making any money today, she thought wryly to herself. choose by skaforhire, on Flickr

The Serpent’s Crawl. (Challenge IV Prelude, Chapter 4) Previous Prelude chapters: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 The Serpent’s Crawl. Fred’Ae Farsin was praying that this strong wind kept its force throughout the rest of the afternoon, he had not sailed this quickly between Berigora and Ras-el-akhen since the time he was caught with a typhoon to his back. With the time he was making, he almost sailed north to check out the wares at Mpya Stedor, but he did not know what effect the Great Disturbance had had on that city, and decided to stay his present course. It was odd, a minor tsunami had hit the region known as Peregrenis, but the bay that Berigora is settled in received minimal damage. However, reports had already flooded in from the mainland stating that not only was the Tsunami much greater there, but volcanic eruptions and an earthquake that lasted for hours had decimated much of the Kaliphlin landscape. Well, that was unfortunate, but good ol’ Fred knew profit where profit could be had, and natural disaster screamed gold duccats. He had loaded up his PGTC vessel, the Walrus, with foodstuffs, and decided to sail right for the middle of Kaliphlin in the hope to unload quickly before others took up the task too. This wind was a true blessing. It was getting to be late afternoon when one of his sailors screamed “Land Ho!” This was strange, as Fred had cut out wide from the mainland, hoping to just skim the Void Tide – The no man’s land of the Southern Ocean – and still take advantage of the off coast winds. This meant that he should be out of sight of land. Perhaps his Crossstaff was broken? He ran to the helm and gasped. crawl by skaforhire, on Flickr Across the water in front of him from north to south, as far as his eyes could see, lay a large piece of land. The rock formation seemed covered with fresh grass, as if it had been there years, and the formation twisted and turned, but remained north and south oriented. It reminded Fred of a large snake made of rocks, cliffs, and sea caves. As he sailed closer he noticed a wrecked ship among the rocks. The poor saps in that crew must have approached this area at night and missed this new formation altogether. Although he was unsure of it, he knew that this formation had something to do with the Great Disturbance. If he had to make a wager, he would say that all of this had to do with some sort of ancient magic. His thoughts turned to his current predicament. DSC_3867 by skaforhire, on Flickr He sailed closer to cliffs to investigate the wreck. There were no survivors. It was at this point that he saw what seemed to be the last light of day shining from within the sea caves. There must be a way through!!! Fred’Ae Farsin swallowed hard and gave the order to sail for the largest cave. If he found a navigable way through the caves, he would be a very rich captain indeed. DSC_3872 by skaforhire, on Flickr And so it was that Fred’Ae Farsin was the first man to navigate the Serpent’s Crawl, the new land bridge that must have been created by the Great Disturbance. Not only had the University of Petraea credited him as the first navigator of the sea caves, but he also has been credited with naming the new formation. Of course, Ol’ Fred soon quit his job and became a pirate in that same sea cave. That is truly a way to make money in this dire time. ------------------- On a OOC note... I had to put together a build to introduce the next story portion. I am not the best Micro builder, if anyone else wants to do a take on this story, I will gladly add your builds too! Oh yeah! NM's Map! kaliphlin-south-east by Map, on Flickr